The Evolution of Comic Book Villains in the MCU
In the world of comic books, the need for an endless array of villains to fight, and be ultimately defeated by, superheroes has led to the creation of some colorful and weird characters over the years. However, in comic-book movies, villains are treated largely seriously, particularly in the towering realm of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). To that end, the next MCU movie to hit theaters, Captain America: Brave New World, is putting a more threatening spin on some of the comics’ sillier antagonists.
A new Entertainment Weekly feature highlights the efforts of the film’s cast, crew, and director to transform the Serpent Society, a villainous group from the comics, into a more menacing force. The feature, which reminds readers that Captain America: Serpent Society was used as a joke title in 2014, features star Giancarlo Esposito, producer Nate Moore, and director Julius Onah discussing their approach to the character.
Moore explained that the key to making the Serpent Society a credible threat was to find the context in which the character existed in the comics. “You take something that seems inherently ridiculous, and you figure out what the context of it could be,” he said. “And then we just got to work with a really talented actor,” he added, referring to Esposito.
Esposito is well aware of how his character, Seth Voelker aka Sidewinder, appears in the source material. He went back to the comic to study the character’s appearance and wanted to avoid looking like that. Onah wanted a groundedness of what Esposito would bring to the role, but Esposito wanted to borrow some color and subtleties from the original comic to channel Seth Voelker.
In Captain America: Brave New World, Esposito’s Sidewinder is described as “very delicious and powerful,” while Onah teased that Esposito’s character brings “a grounding and a gravitas to the Serpent Society.” This new take on the character promises to be a genuinely menacing force, and fans will get to witness it when the film opens on February 14.
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